FX.co ★ UK Retail Sales Growth Slows to Nearly 2-Year Low

UK retail sales rose 0.5% year-on-year on a like-for-like basis in August 2026, down from a 1% increase in July and marking the weakest growth since October 2024. Total retail sales growth also slowed to a four-month low of 0.7%, compared with 1.3% in the previous month. Food sales grew by 2.6%, easing from 3.8% in July, while non-food sales declined 0.8% after a 0.7% drop a month earlier. According to the British Retail Consortium, record-high temperatures earlier in the summer had pulled forward seasonal purchases—particularly in food, drink, and health and beauty—leaving most other categories struggling to maintain momentum in August. Consumers also reduced spending on big-ticket items such as furniture and household appliances, shifting instead toward lower-cost health and beauty products. Separately, Barclays’ broader gauge of consumer spending rose 2.1% year-on-year in August, slightly above July’s 2% increase, while its consumer confidence index fell to 26%, down from a 21-month high of 30% in July.